Chapter 24

 

 

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Jieun stifled a yawn as she trotted up the stairs of her apartment building in a sluggish manner. She had exchanged a brief farewell to Zelo merely over ten minutes ago. However, she was more than one hundred per cent certain that the moment her head would hit the pillow, she would be fast asleep before she could even shout profanities at those damn demons. The same twelve who had been persistently bothering her with bucket loads of text messages streaming into her poor overworked phone. 

 

She lifted her arms over her head, moving to ruffle her hair tiredly when she had realised the grey haired boy had neglected to remove his snap back from her head. The brunette blinked for a moment before a wry smile wormed its way onto her face. Such a forgetful kid, that guy is. Just as she reached the top of the stairs, her apartment just a corner away she took out her phone and proceeded to text Zelo.

 

[Sender:] Jieun

[Message:] You forgot your hat, stupid.

 

Not even a minute later, just as she was about to pop the device back into her pocket, the item in question beeped to life. With a sweeping glance at the screen, she tapped in her password swiftly as the message came up.

 

[Sender:] Zelo-ah~~~~

[Message:] Don’t be like that Jieun-ahhh~ I’m not stupid >_< I did that on purpose…I thought you looked cute wearing my hat…so I just left it with you. But you better look after it for me, it’s my favourite snap back noona~ :D

 

Aish, what a brat. She blew her bangs in a huff, her eyes averted upwards towards the hat in contemplation. If this is his so-called favourite hat, why would he leave it with me? The petite girl lifted the object off her head, inspected it with high scrutiny, then with a resigned look she put it back into its original place. Well…I suppose it’s not that bad to wear.

 

Jieun hummed under her breath as she approached her door, in the process of texting back Zelo and her other hand extending out to her pocket for her house keys, the door had swung open. Though, the oblivious girl fumbled around for her keys as she went about opening her door as usual, her gaze stuck firmly on her phone. When she started to push her key forwards, it seemed to plunge into the open air rather than its intended destination.

 

What the…where did the door go?

 

Just as she hit the send button, she glanced upwards from her phone, where she could see a number of t-shirt clad bodies. She blinked to herself, as her gaze stared to rise up with the accompaniment of dread bubbling over in the pit of her stomach. Oh….

 

Her thoughts matched her sentiment as her gaze was greeted with a number of glaring, stoic stares. Unsure of how to react, she lifted up the hand holding her phone and waved slowly. “…Uh, hello? Nice seeing you all here, but what’s with all the hostility?”

 

Chanyeol scowled—something the curly haired male rarely did once his demon transformation came to an end—as he pointed a finger at her phone. “So, you have time to text others but you don’t reply to any of us?” His booming voice echoed slightly into the halls causing her eyes to widen in realization.

 

Nosy neighbours. Yunhee. Must close door before any of them find out! Wordlessly, she ushered all of them further into her apartment in a slight blur of panic as she stepped through to swiftly shut the door, now away from any potential inquisitive eyes she let out a relieved sigh. It was only when she heard a few exaggerated coughs in the background that she was bought back into reality, so to speak anyway.

 

 

With a pointed look towards them, she spoke with practiced patience. “For your information, I replied to Suho because all of you were continually bombarding my phone with messages, do you know how many funny looks I had gotten all of today? Aish, I’m surprised you didn’t exceed the message limit!”

 

Luhan didn’t appear to be satisfied with her answer as he practically snarled out. “Then who exactly were you texting just now, it doesn’t seem like to anyone of us.” Oh boy…She had to try her best not to think her thoughts when she already knew the baby faced demon could easily read her mind. It was futile trying to lie her way out of it, besides they had already met Zelo anyway, there wouldn’t be any harm in telling them.

 

Or so she thought.

 

“I was just texting back to Zelo; he shoved his hat on me earlier and forgot to take it back.” She shrugged her shoulders with a nonchalant look, not really thinking it was a big deal as she took her shoes off by the door.

 

There were a few sharp intakes of breath then it wasn’t long before a mixture of evidently angered animalistic growls and snarls broke into the air. “So that explains the disgusting smell.” Jongin rolled his eyes, folding his arms over his chest.

 

“…Jieun-ah, are you replacing us with him?” The youngest sniffed loudly, clinging onto Suho’s arm so tightly she was surprised that the leader’s face didn’t even flinch. The brown haired male let out a deranged wail before shoving his face into the water controller’s neck. There was actually a small part of her that wanted to reach out and grab him…but she didn’t. That wasn’t the Sehun she had gotten to know.

 

“I have known Zelo before I even met any of you, how could he be a replacement?” She tried reasoning, even though she knew deep down it wouldn’t work.

 

“You seem to be happier when you’re with him; you think I don’t hear your thoughts even though you’re far away? Then the moment you step back into this apartment, you instantly become annoyed at everything we do. We’re just your little toys that you throw away when you are no longer interested; we’re not even allowed to roam freely outside the four walls of this damn place.” Luhan’s eyes were darkened, the irises on the verge of melting into a crimson oblivion.

 

“That’s not true, Luhan.” Jieun breathed out, trying to keep her eyes on his—which was quite a feat in itself considering how much anger that was radiating from his body at that moment. The blond in question merely sneered at her.

 

This isn’t the Luhan you know; please keep this in mind Jieun.

 

“You and I both know you’re just lying to yourself. You claim to care for us…but you don’t show it.” Jieun merely stared back at him silently.

 

“Luhan, that’s enough. There’s no need to be like that to Jieun-ah.” Baekhyun, sensing the tense atmosphere, tried to lighten up the conversation. He wasn’t too happy either about what seemed to have gone on behind the scenes, but he wouldn’t allow someone so important to him to be spoken to in such a manner.

 

“No. She needs to hear this. We won’t be able to move forward if she keeps holding back.” It was more than evident that his demon was already breaking through; Jieun knew she had to act fast before the situation boiled way over it was meant to. “We had lives before all of this, when we weren’t being confided in that insufferable book, we all thought that our lives would change for the better when we were released…but this is just like being back in that book, we are stuck in this tiny place and not even enjoying what this universe has to offer…all because this girl is embarrassed to be around us.”

 

Chanyeol didn’t even hesitate to go to Jieun’s side along with a selective few, but not before roughly brushing his shoulder against his blond older brother without even a glance back.

 

“Luhan, let’s not start something here. Jieun’s only just come home, she’s tired, and there is a time and place to do this.” Kris stood partly in front of the silent girl in a protective stance. The demon in question lowered his gaze for a moment, acknowledging the authority of his leader.

 

No…Luhan’s right. Jieun blinked as she pondered to herself. I was so wrapped up in not wanting anyone to find out about them that I have prevented them from the one thing they craved the most…freedom. Sure, they’re outside of the book now, but it’s not like this settlement is any better.

 

“Whatever. It’s not like she’s going to pay attention to what I say anyway, she thinks she can just show that bland smile of hers and everything turns into sunshine and roses.” He muttered under his breath, but purposely said it so that even she could hear it. Jongin growled loudly as he stood near Jieun as even Sehun lifted up his head and his swollen eyes were widened in shock at what his brother was saying.

 

The brunette, however, remained silent. There was no point in trying to reason to someone who was far too consumed in their own anger to listen. It didn’t help either that she was feeling like all her energy was vanishing as the seconds went on, so she silently walked past the semi-protective circle around her and also past Luhan without a second glance back towards her bedroom.

 

Sometimes, you don’t need to preach like you know everything, you just need to give things time to settle. . . . .

 

 

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She couldn’t lie to herself, deep down she knew that what Luhan had told her did contain some truths. Jieun was far too concerned with trying to justify her own worried concerns of what everyone would think if the twelve demons were to follow her wherever she went by keeping them locked up inside her apartment-which although may have been a slight improvement on their previous circumstances, it was still a prison of sorts.

 

The only thing she had persistently said over and over again, very much like a broken record, was that ‘eternal servitude’ did not matter at all to her, in fact the brunette had firmly set her opinions on the matter straight from the beginning. She hated it. It wasn’t fair to force others to follow what she wanted, as if she was kind of superior being. Which really didn’t make much sense, considering how the demons were actually princes -therefore technically speaking she would have had to listen to them, at least if she was born in their era at least.

 

But it was only now that she really put some serious thought into it that she wasn’t helping them in the slightest bit by hoarding them up in her apartment. If anything, she was making relations between the brothers themselves much more strained than they already were. Even if they were able to roam freely around as much as they liked, they would no doubt draw a considerable amount of attention to themselves. Just a couple flower boys are one thing, but having twelve all in the same place wouldn’t be healthy for anyone.

 

Jieun leaned her head against her folded arms on her desk, nestled within the warm confides of her bedroom, a cup of a tea sitting nicely beside her along with the red lunch box she had forgotten Jongin had kindly prepared for her, though it only took her like one bite before she felt too full enough to be able to eat any more. It had a certain, indescribable taste which was neither appealing nor disgusting.

 

Then, that would beg the question, what would the do or where would they go if they had the choice? Suddenly, the thought of each and everyone of them disappearing behind her apartment door and none looking back towards her was enough for a frown to pull on the corners of her lips. She hadn’t even realized she was doing it until she glanced upwards towards her laptop screen, the unilluminated screen was proof enough of the displeased look on her face. No...I should be happy if they decide to leave. It’s totally their choice if they want to leave and have a new fresh start.

 

Immediately, her heart sank at her musing. They were always going to be temporary in my life, I shouldn’t hold onto them like a child with their favourite candy...after all they’ve been through and all they had to do to put up with me, I should be happy for them.

 

She released a heavy sigh. With a sweeping glance towards her open door, she lifted up her cup to her lips and sipped tentatively. Of course, it would only be a matter of time before they were going to leave her. They were Princes, after all. Why on earth would they want to stick around her?

 

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Yunhee didn’t know what to expect when she heard a brisk knock on her door, the abrupt sound accompanied with a serious of muffled grumbles. It most definitely knocked her out of her thoughts as she discarded her magazine to open the door. She hummed quietly under her breath until she stopped, her eyes widened in recognition upon seeing only six familiar faces of the boys that were staying in her ‘sister’s’ apartment.

 

With a clipped tone, she crossed her arms over her chest. “Is there something the matter, gentlemen?”

 

They all shuffled their feet, sharing secretive looks between each other before one of them spoke up. The tall woman could feel her eye twitch, but remained silent nonetheless.

 

“We are in need of your assistance, Yunhee-ssi.” If she remembered correctly, the wide eyed male speaking was Kyung-something.

 

“Jieun has been more than accommodating to us during our stay with her, but we have all agreed that we should contribute to the finance so that Jieun does not have to worry about money distribution between us all.” The pretty woman merely raised an eyebrow.

 

“And what exactly do you expect me to do about this? You think I can offer you jobs with the drop of a hat?” Another one appeared to be visibly confused.

 

You’re the only person other than Jieun that we trust wholeheartedly, we didn’t want to bother Jieun about this matter because we knew that she would just tell us that we didn’t need to work. That’s why only half of us came over to talk to you, so that it wouldn’t make her suspicious.” Yeah, that sounds about right.

 

Jieun can be far too soft sometimes...but it’s not a side that everyone has the pleasure of being able to see.

 

“I can’t guarantee that you will be able to get jobs, the only thing I can do is inquire to my boss. After that, whichever how many of you wanted to work, you would most probably have to speak with him about the job opportunities available.” Despite the fact there was no absolute reassurance she could offer them, a few beamed bright smiles towards her while the others simply remained indifferent. But she could see that their eyes had softened somewhat.

 

“You won’t regret this, Yunhee-ssi. Thank you for doing this!”

 

“You better not make me regret anything I’m doing for you guys. If you ever even think about taking advantage of my Jieun, you’d be lucky to escape me, that’s all I can say.” She glared daggers at each and every one of those six deceptively sweet smiling face before she released a weary, heavy sigh.

 

“I’ll give him a call now and we’ll just take it from there.” The older woman leaned back to allow them into her apartment. Inwardly hoping that she wouldn’t be making a big mistake here, or that her boss would be a good mood when she called.

 

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Jieun did not even attempt to leave her bed for the remainder of the day, it was quite peculiar. The main primary emotion which was coursing through her was just simply fatigue...but now, she couldn’t put her finger on why her body suddenly went against her. She felt too warm. Her head was aching so painfully that it hurt to even lift up her head. And not forgetting of course the constant pangs of nausea whenever she attempted to sit upright. So, she did not pay much attention to the fact that nobody seemed to dare to knock on her door to check she was alright or bring some food along.

 

The brunette threw a hopeless gaze towards her shut door. They probably won’t even care...why should I bother? It’s not like I can’t take care of myself when I’m ill, it’s not that first time I’ve had to do this anyway. It was only towards the later parts of the evening where she could not physically nor mentally force herself to fall asleep that she discovered that she was unable to even sit up from her bed.

 

She scrunched her eyes in the pitch black darkness that hungrily consumed the room. I need to get some medicine from the kitchen, or to just get out of this stuffy room. With little to no energy left inside her, she had to repress her urges to stay in bed as she slowly pushed herself upwards.

 

The motion itself was sufficient enough to throw her back down again, she gritted her teeth together as she attempted to ignore the sudden shoots of pain in futility. Come on, Jieun. You’ve been relying too much on others, you need to realize that you can’t always have them around, waiting on your hand to follow your every request.

 

The brunette drew in an uneasy breath, the small thoughts at the back of her mind were ever present. Nibbing greedily onto her concerns of...being alone again.

 

The trip just from her bed to the door took much, much longer than it needed to be, but she had already anticipated that it wouldn’t take a couple of seconds like it normally took. It didn’t help either that her negative thoughts were practically feasting on her unstable self. No matter how many times she tried to halt her train of thoughts, they continued to rush forth like a tsunami.

 

The twelve beings that had fallen into her life, the same twelve whom she had persistently refused to acknowledge whatever exactly their relationship was with herself...now, she couldn’t even bare the thought of any of them leaving her.

 

By the time she had managed to reach her door, she was trying to hold back on retching several times, whilst feeling so dizzy that she could barely walk in a straight line. In between stopping intervals, she had to take deep breaths to try and calm herself down, but it only seemed to worsen her condition, than anything else. The petite girl slowly opened the door, the silence seemed to carry on through the hallways towards the guest room and living room.

 

Where were they? Was her first immediate thought as she glanced around a few times.

 

She took a tentative step forward but the nausea was becoming too much for her to handle at this stage, she winced at the pain causing her to lose her footing as she stumbled to the ground. With her heightened emotions, the pent up frustration of not being in control of her own body was beginning to break through the seams. Jieun raised her clenched fists up to bang against the floor, a half-sob broke through her lips as her head bent downwards.

 

Have they already left her? Without even so much as a goodbye? Suddenly, the front door opened with a swing, then a moment later disgruntled noises were emitted.

 

“Could you please for one second stop walking through the door when I do? You know we just end up getting stuck in the frame, Sehun-ssi.”

 

“For goodness sake, don’t barge past us when you’re not holding any bags, Chanyeol!”

 

“But you guys were taking forever walking back! Honestly, even the older people were passing us on the street!”

 

“Just because somebody has exceptionally longer legs than the rest of us, doesn’t mean that we’re slow walkers.”

 

Jieun groaned, attempting to push herself upwards but there was no more strength left in her to do so, her migraine was becoming too much to bear. It was even making her believe the voice hallucinations were actually real for a second there.

 

“Pffft, don’t even try to justify the fact you guys are just slow~” The distinct sound of Chanyeol’s boisterous laughter entered into the air, making her cover her ears with her hands. Stop it, why am I hearing this? Chanyeol’s not really here...They all left me, didn’t they?

 

A resigned sound was breathed out. “Honestly, why we even bother trying to explain ourselves--” Then, at once the dull drops of bags was all she heard distantly before a second later, several whooshing noises echoed around her.

 

“Jieun? Can you hear me? Say something!” She could hear someone with dire desperation coating their voice.

 

“This is ing why I didn’t want to leave her by herself.” Another one entered the muffled conversation as others continued to mingle in.

 

Jieun’s breathing quickly became haggard. Why was her mind torturing her like this? This wasn’t right. “Stop it! None of you are real, leave me alone!” Thinking that this was just an hallucination, she raised her own voice. The brunette could feel herself trembling greatly.

 

“Ssh, it’s okay. We’re all here for you, Jieun-ah. Nothing will ever happen to you when we’re around.” Baekhyun’s soothing words were whispered into her ear, close enough for her to be able to feel his own breath hovering over her ear. Instantly, fighting back the pangs of nausea, she weakly pushed him away as she backed up slowly.

 

“No...you’re not really here. All of you left me...STOP DOING THIS TO ME!” She screamed out, until her voice eventually died out into sobs. Baekhyun froze. His eyes widened upon realizing that Jieun had rejected him in such a manner. Something was wrong here. He slowly turned to look at Suho, not knowing what to do.

 

“Someone get Lay here. Right now.” Luhan’s voice was steel as he approached the wild-eyed girl slowly. Suho did not hesitate to leave the apartment in a flash. She was shaking her head as she tried to edge away. But he was having none of it as he moved to grab her. Despite her many, many attempts to get away, he held on to her, his face buried in the comforting scent of her neck.

 

 

“I’m sorry Jieun-ah. I didn’t mean what I said to you...I was just jealous and acted irrationally.”

 

 

She continued to struggle regardless of him trying to bring her back. But he did not relent as he refused to let her go as he continued to whisper sweet nothings into her ear, in hope she could return back. Sehun merely stared on, teary eyed before he couldn’t take it anymore either as he flung himself into the one-sided hug.

 

“We’re really here, Jieun-ah. We’ve sworn an oath to be with you, I promise you that we will never leave your side.” The youngest, very much like his twin, held on tightly to the brunette, who in turn did not react positively to this as she cried out muffled responses. Chanyeol could only look on helplessly at the situation, he could not fathom what had made Jieun act in this way.

 

Xiumin, being the silent one, examined the situation carefully in his mind. She was always the rational one. His brown eyes narrowed in suspicion, there were other supernatural beings in this world, ones of whom were evidently not fond of Jieun. He glanced at her rosy face, the way her eyes moved erratically. There was no way she was going to cooperate willingly, no chance at all with her like this. So with that final thought, he casually walked up to her, ignoring her sudden deer-stuck-in-the-headlights expression once her gaze rested upon him until he crouched down near enough so he could reach her. The demon raised his palm to her exceedingly warm forehead and focused on his powers. Slowly, but surely, her eyes began to drop as her cries, incoherent sentences and flailing arms all ceased until she calmed now, her breathing returning back to its original state.

 

He shook his head as he stood up straight. Luhan her hair, guilt was evident in his young features whilst Sehun continued to hug her. It was only then did Chanyeol and Baekhyun wander over with concerned looks. Xiumin did not want to voice out his own thinking as of yet, as he walked back over to the hall to pick up the fallen bags. We could be dealing with anyone, it would be unwise to jump to conclusions so easily.

 

Our main priority is to protect Jieun and make sure we know what we’re up against exactly.

 

 

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an update! You must be thinking. Well, it's not as positive as it may be, but I think my mood is reflected in this chapter.

 

A lot has happened in the K-pop over the course of the year 2014. It's been very difficult for many fans, for various reasons. Unfortunately, life isn't always going to be a bed of roses and everyone being happy. Sometimes, events happen which we dread and even become emotional about. 

The only thing we can really do is continue to support the Kpop idols, regardless of whether you're sick and tired of all that's happening, because life sometimes but we should all stick together. Because we can get through this. 

Until next time,